Your daily dose of bad news … edition 300 at which stage I think thanks to the authors
are in order …
in the spotlight, again, today ……………………while we await clarification from the CITES Secretariat.
Row over possible baby elephant move http://citizen.co.za/296809/row-possible-baby-elephant-move/
Kenya: Cry for Baby Elephants
Wildlife Direct CEO Paula Kahumbu said: "Elephants have characteristics that are nearly human. This makes the capture of baby elephants all the more heartbreaking for the them and their families."
Zimbabwe’s government has admitted capturing baby elephants for export to the UAE, despite warnings by conservationists that taking them from their mothers could kill them. http://allafrica.com/stories/201412150724.html
Leonardo DiCaprio ?@LeoDiCaprio Dec 16 34 baby elephants need your help! Stand w/@action4ifaw : tell Zimbabwe exporting wild elephants is WRONG: http://g.ifaw.org/zimeles14
Save Baby Elephants Stolen From Their Families
Last month, 36 baby elephants were kidnapped from their families in the wild.
Helicopters swarmed elephant herds in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, firing guns over the heads of the elephants and causing them to scatter.
The baby elephants who couldn’t keep up were violently stolen with plans to sell them to zoos.
These elephants need YOUR help: Please join us in urging the Embassy of Zimbabwe to do everything in its power to stop the plans to capture more elephants and to rescue the babies currently awaiting export.
https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=5803
No 300 Wildlife Trade News 20th December 2014
Prince William’s International Leadership on Animal Conservation by Richard Leakey extract: The second point I would add is the vital role for the general public throughout the world.
Strong ties between cops, villagers hit illegal loggers hard. SARAWAK
Chung (third left) and his officers showing photos of the illegal logs and equipment seized in Serian. Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/12/20/strong-ties-between-cops-villagers-hit-illegal-loggers-hard/#ixzz3MPvmUdhq
The other side of the Penan story: threatened tribe embraces tourism, reforestation. SARAWAK http://news.mongabay.com/2011/1219-hance_bate_interview.html
Taib and the timber mafia: profits from paradise. SARAWAK
extract: After 50 years of deforestation, only 11 percent of Sarawak’s rainforest remain. Indigenous peoples, who have lived with the forest for at least 40,000 years, have been recklessly pushed aside, robbed of their communal forests, and moved into resettlement camps for the dam projects. “Many of the people of Sarawak are as poor as they were when I was born’” says Mutang Urud, an indigenous activist. “And yet, the value of the trees that have been felled is estimated to exceed $50 billion.” www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2014/12/20/taib-and-the-timber-mafia-profits-from-paradise/
Rehome Katarina at Matang orangutan sanctuary. MALAYSIA http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/284058
Melaka Zoo: Stupidly irresponsible idea to import animals. MALAYSIA
Kenya Records Significant Drop In Wildlife Crimes http://www.coastweek.com/3751-special-report-03.htm
2014 Was The Worst Year for Rhino Deaths in South Africa http://www.ecorazzi.com/2014/12/19/2014-was-the-worst-year-for-rhino-deaths-in-south-africa/
S. Africa busts int’l rhino horn smuggling syndicate http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/xinhua-news-agency/141220/s-africa-busts-intl-rhino-horn-smuggling-syndicate
UK demand for sustainable palm oil rises – experts respond to Defra report http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/dec/19/sustainable-palm-oil-rises-experts-defra-report
Deal reached over Chinese coral poachers
Boats operated by Chinese coral poachers dot the ocean near the Ogasawara Islands, south of Tokyo, on Oct. 31. | KYODO http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/12/19/national/tokyo-beijing-agree-boost-steps-chinese-coral-poaching-japans-waters/#.VJUab_8MBA
AFRICA INVESTMENT-Can Africa turn the "curse" of big animals into an economic blessing?extract: It has since been escalating dramatically, driven by consumer demand in China, where ivory is coveted for decorative items and jewellery. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/19/africa-investment-idUSL6N0U30TO20141219
Kenya: Ivory Trade Has Now Moved Online, Warns Report extract: The report says China had the highest total number of items offered for sale with a staggering 18,590 pieces valued at $2,744,500 and a total of 157 adverts were forwarded to law enforcers for further probe.
#China: Young artist arrested for selling #ivory and #rhino horn carvings, possibly facing over 10 years in jail CITES Tweet
(NA comment: This is all well and good, but why are the big Chinese dealers in ivory not being prosecuted? Why are countless shops still able to openly sell illegal ivory in China? Isn’t making a big thing of these small prosecutions is nothing more than window-dressing designed to appease CITES?)
WHY DO WE NEVER SEE ON THE CITES WEB SITE, NEWS REPORTS CRITICAL OF CHINA’S COMPLICITY IN THE IVORY TRADE?
IS THE SECRETARIAT SHIELDING CHINA FROM CRITICISM? IF SO. WHY?
WHOSE SIDE DO YOU FEEL CITES ARE ON?
From the FB page of ElephantVoices https://www.facebook.com/ElephantVoices
Here are two articles about China’s role in the ongoing animal bloodbath in Africa. While we don’t want to promote China-bashing, it is important to call a spade a spade. The #Chinese government must acknowledge that Chinese demand for ivory is primarily responsible for the slaughter of Africa’s most iconic animal – the African elephant – and take real steps to stop the haemorrhaging of life. #China must close down its domestic ivory trade, close the ivory carving factories and the retail outlets.
China must also acknowledge that it is largely responsible for the ongoing killing of a multitude of other species of plants and animals, with the latest casualty being the beautiful giraffe. It is unconscionable, in this day and age, that the rape of a continent is permitted. African Governments must also be held accountable for turning a blind eye to what is taking place. If you comment, please keep a decent language. Please make your feelings known to any Chinese embassy, and anyone with connections in China. http://www.eturbonews.com/53565/china-cross-hairs-again-over-blood-ivory
Enforcement & monitoring needed in palm oil sector http://eia-international.org/enforcement-monitoring-needed-in-palm-oil-sector
The last holdout among big palm oil businesses joins no-deforestation pledge http://grist.org/food/the-last-holdout-among-big-palm-oil-producers-joins-no-deforestation-pledge/
For Leopards in Iran and Iraq, Land Mines Are a Surprising Refuge Land mines keep people out of the Persian leopard’s last habitats, creating a conundrum—removing the hazards leaves the cats more vulnerable
WildlifeDirect Newsletter 2014 http://www.scribd.com/doc/250558264/WildlifeDirect-Newsletter-2014
LAST DAYS: Have you seen this? https://www.youtube.com/embed/5gQujyNDp98
Indonesia threatens action against Taiwanese boats http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclass-cnt.aspx?cid=1101&MainCatID=11&id=20141220000077
Thank You, Sea Shepherd: Operation Pacuare in Costa Rica http://news.co.cr/thank-sea-shepherd-operation-pacuare-costa-rica/36400/
Red sanders wood worth Rs 11 crore seized at Hoskote. INDIA http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/crime/Red-sanders-wood-worth-Rs-11-crore-seized-at-Hoskote/articleshow/45579580.cms
125M ha of degraded lands identified for forest-friendly agricultural expansion. SABAH/MALAYSIA http://news.mongabay.com/2014/1219-degraded-lands-map.html
Boosting the conservation value of 4M sq km of rainforest logging concessions http://news.mongabay.com/2014/1212-reduced-impact-logging.html#ixzz3MGaBbMWD
